I made my first wheat bread this weekend, and even though I probably didn't let it rise long enough, and I probably messed up the kneading a little bit, it was still incredibly good! It turned out dense and crumbly, slightly chewy - so you get a good mouth feel. There's a faint aroma and taste of the honey that goes in it, and the crust turns a lovely golden brown from the light brushing of butter it receives at the very last minute. My favorite thing for breakfast lately has been a good hunk of this bread, warmed up in the toaster, with butter and berry preserves.
Simple Whole Wheat Bread
INGREDIENTS
3 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C) (I ran the tap on hot and found it barely reached 110 degrees, so I added a bit of water from the kettle)
2 (.25 ounce) packages
active dry yeast
2/3 cup honey - separated into two 1/3 cups
5 cups bread flour (you can mix white and whole wheat flour here, or use all white flour)
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon salt
3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons butter, melted
DIRECTIONS
1. In a large bowl, mix
warm water, yeast, and 1/3 cup honey.
2. Add 5 cups bread
flour, and stir to combine.
3. Let set for 30
minutes, or until big and bubbly.
4. Mix in 3 tablespoons
melted butter, 1/3 cup honey, and salt.
5. Stir in 2 cups whole wheat flour. The flour will be sticky and hard to stir, but just keep at it.
6. Flour a flat surface and knead with whole wheat flour until not real sticky - just pulling away from the counter, but still sticky to touch. This may take an additional 2 to 4 cups of whole wheat flour. (I only added 1 additional cup of flour while kneading, and it was more than enough.)
7. Place in a greased
bowl, turning once to coat the surface of the dough. Cover with a dishtowel.
Let rise in a warm place until doubled.
(Approximately 3 hours)
8. Punch down, and divide into 3 loaves. Place in greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans, and allow to rise until dough has topped the pans by one inch. (I only let it rise for 15 minutes as we were going out. Next time I will let it rise for an hour or so.)
9.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes; do not
overbake.
10. Lightly brush the tops
of loaves with 2 tablespoons melted butter or margarine when done to prevent
crust from getting hard. Cool completely.
Bon appetit!!!

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